Combined cane and stool



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 J. A. NIXON.

COMBINED CANE AND STOOL.

No. 493,285. Patented Mar. 14, 1893.

Fig. 2.

ATTORNEY.

BY w4/M NrrE STATES ATENT Enron.

JAMES A. NIXON, OF TITUSVILLE, ASSIGN OR OF THREE-FOURTHS TO HARVEY J.HOPKINS, OF PLEASANTVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

COMBINED CANE AND STOOL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 493,285, dated March14, 1893.

Application filed June 4, 1892. Serial No. 435,509- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JAMES A. NIXON, a citizen of the United States,residing at Titusville, in the county of Crawford and State of 5Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in a CombinedCane and Camp-Stool, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that article so convenient to a foot traveler orsight seer, a cane,

which can readily be transformed into a cam pstool; my object being tomake one that shall be as far as possible, most suitable for both uses,viz: as a cane, strong, light appearing I and light in weight; and as acamp stool,

strong, and easy of seat; also that the transformation from cane tostool, and stool to cane,

is easily and quickly accomplished. I accomplish this by the deviceillustrated in the accompanying two sheets of drawings; in whichFigure 1. represents the cane; Fig. 2. the cane as separated, ready tobe transformed into a camp stool; Fig. 3. the camp stool ready for use;Fig. 4. the upper ends of the legs forming the tripod, open, and theinclosing socket removed; Fig. 5. the same with the tripod closed; Fig.6. the tripod open, with the socket inclosing the head and supportingthe seat, in section; Fig. 7. the tripod in section, closed, and thesocket also in sect-ion; Fig. 8. a top view of the seat and centralring. In the several drawings, the same letters are used to indicate thesame or similar parts. The central section of the cane A. contains theprincipal component parts of the stool;

' B. the lower end; 0 the ferrule covering and inclosing the foldingseat, and forming the upper end and head of the cane. The lower sectionB. is a simple, solid stick having the 40 ferrule D. upon the top,fitted to slide over, or screw on to the lower end of the section A. Thelower part of the section A. is composed of there legs, triangular inshape, forming when folded together a round stick; and when open, atripod for the support of the seat; and held together at the top by thesocket E. The particular form of the legs is shown in Figs. 4. and 5,the extreme upper end of all, when the legs are closed, forming acircle, equal in diameter to the inside of the socket E. The legs arefurther held together at the top by the elastic ring E. which serves asa pivot upon which the legs swing. The legs above the ring F. arechamt'ered on the inside as shown in Fig. 5. so that when the legs arespread out they form the frustum of a cone as shown in Fig. 4. They arealso chamfered on the inside as shown in section in Fig. 7. bringing theupper end nearly to a sharp edge, and so that when spread out there isleft in the center, a round hole as indicated by the dotted lines inFig. 6.

The socket E. is a plain ring, having aninterior projecting rim G. (Fig.6 and 7) at the bottom, and an interior screw thread at the top. Thelegs, when put together-as described above are inserted in the socket bypassing them through from the top, the ends projecting below until theelastic ring F rests upon the rim G. of the socket. A follower H. isthen inserted in the socket, filling the socket and having its undersurface beveled, to fit over the legs when extended, as shown in Fig. 6,thus assisting to hold them in place and render the tripod firm. Thisfollower is also slightly beveled on the outside, at the bottom, sothat, when the legs are closed, the bevel rests against the chamferededge on the inside of the legs, as shownin Fig. 7, thus preventing themfrom rattling when used as a cane. Concentric with, and projecting upfrom the follower H. is the neck I. having an exterior screw thread fora short distance from the top, and below that the thread is removed,leaving those above, projecting. After the follower is inserted, theinterior collar K. is screwed into the socket E; thus preventing thefollower H. from being lifted from the socket. A second ring L. is nowintroduced within the collar K. having at the bottom one 0 or twothreads of screw projecting from the interior surface, fitted to engagewith and pass the thread on the neck, I. of the follower. This engageswith and passes the thread on 1. until the threads are free from eachother, when the ring L. rests upon the follower H. and has a free rotarymotion. It cannot be lifted out however Without engaging the screwthreads, and Lin-screwing it from the neck I. This ring L. must ofcourse to:

be of slightly less diameter than the interior diameter of the collar K.for so much of the ring as at any timeis required to pass through thecollar, but above that point the diameter may be increased to equal theinterior diameter of the socket E, or of the ferrule 0, thus affordingadditional strength. In the sides, near the top of the ring are cut theslots M. and in those slots, hinged upon the pivot N. are placed thearms 0. extending radially and forming the seat. A screw plug, P.isinserted in the end of the ring, and the radial arms 0. rest on thebottom of the slot M. and the under side of the plug P. thus relievingthe pivot N. of any strain. The inclination of the radial arms may beadjusted by the plug P. The radial arms, shown here as four in number,(but may be more or less,) forming the seat, and being an attachment tothe ring L revolve freely with the ring; and since the ring L. rests onthe follower H, the weight of the person occupying the seat, presses thefollower H. more firmly upon the top of the tripod. The radial arms 0.may be. folded together upward, as shown in Fig. 7 and the wholeinclosed in the ferrule C. which screws on to the collar K. a head R. isplaced on the top of the ferrule G. to add to the comfort andconvenience as a cane; a hole being made in the head for the'purposehereinafter described.

The transformation from cane to camp stool is made as follows: The upperferule C. is removed;the lower end B. is removed, when the tripod A. isexpanded, the end B. is reversed, the bottom end being inserted in thehole in the center of the head of the tripod, wedges the legs apart andadds to the stiifness. At the same time being rightly adjusted as tolength, it acts as a center support as shown in Fig. 3. For convenience,the top ferrule C. maybe slipped over the section B. before this isinserted in the tripod. The radial arms 0. having fallen down, the stoolis ready for use. The change from stool to cane is equally quick.

I make no claim for the broad device of an article, convertible intoeither cane or camp stool, as that is not new.

What I do claim as my invention is 1. In a folding camp stool: thetripod constructed as shown, the legs forming the tripod held togetherat the top by the elastic ring F; the top forming, when the legs arespread, a frustum of a cone, the top inclosed in the socket E, and withthe follower I-I, fitting over and resting on the conical head of thetripod; substantially as shown and described.

2. A folding camp stool; consisting of a tripod, the legs of which areconstructed as shown, the head of the tripod inclosed in the socket E.and forming, when the legs are extended, a frustum of a cone; thefollower H. restingon and inclosingthe head of the tripod; the ring L.having internally projecting screw threads at the bottom engaging withand passing the externally projecting threads on the top of the neck I.of the follower H; the internal collar K; the radial arms 0. hinged inslots in the ring L; and the plug P, inserted in the upper end of thering L. the radial arms, when extended, resting on the bottom of theslot M and on the under side of the screw P.; all the parts Working incombination substantially as shown and described.

3. A convertible cane and camp stool: consisting of the central sectionA. formed of the tripod, the legs of which, folded together, form around stick, and when extended form a tripod for the support of theseat; the head of the tripod inclosed in the socket E.; the follower H,inside the socket, resting on and inclosing the head of the tripod; thering L, with internally projecting screw threads at the bottom. engagingwith and passing the externally projecting screw threads on the top ofthe neck I. of the follower H; the. internal collar K; the radial arms0, hinged in slots in the upper end of the ring L; the plug P. in thetop of the ring L; and the lower section B. of the cane, inverted andinserted in the center of the tripod and forming a central support; theferrule C. with head R, All the parts working in combination;substantially as shown and described.

JAMES A. NIXON.

Witnesses:

JOSEPH SMITH, JOSEPH T. CHASE.

